IT’S A NEW YEAR and a new decade. There is no better
time to take stock of your health and make improvements
than the start of a new year. This jam-packed health and
fitness issue is sure to inspire you.

Last January, fitness expert and author Jorge Cruise
penned an article for us and told about his upcoming
book, The Belly Fat Cure, and a report on the causes and
dangers of belly fat. He also invited Costco members to
try his Belly Fat Cure program and offered free personal
coaching. He received an overwhelming response: More
than 160,000 Costco members downloaded the report
from his Web site, and more than 1,000 members sent in

“before” photos along with applications to participate. One hundred Costco members
were selected—seven of these success stories are part of our cover story on page 34.
Jorge’s new book is now available in our warehouses and on Costco.com.

You will also find other helpful articles to get you off to a good start in the “For Your
Health” section of this issue, starting on page 39. If you are a smoker, the best improvement you can make is to quit. Make this your year to stop smoking by following our tips
on page 49; we offer several products to help you quit in our warehouses and online.

Now that the holidays are over, you may be ready to spruce up your home. Our
twice-yearly furniture rollout has arrived in Costco warehouses, with many additional
items available year-round on Costco.com. Many of our new items are showcased in the
“For Your Home” section, beginning on page 57, along with tips from experts such as
Kathy Ireland. Also, be sure to check out the instant savings starting on page 66.

Last but not least, happy 10th anniversary to Costco Travel, our full-service travel
agency. You can learn more about our great service and value on page 88.

Happy New Year from all of us at Costco! C

Ginnie Roeglin is Senior Vice
President, E-Commerce and
Publishing, and Publisher of
The Costco Connection.

from the editor’s desk

David W. Fuller

I FIND THE CORRELATION between following
good business practices and doing what is good in the
non-business world fascinating. The Connection favors
articles that demonstrate or describe this connection
because it allows us to do double duty with a single piece.

You can read a good business story once, thinking about
how it relates to your business, and then read it again,
thinking about how it might relate to your personal
life. A case in point is the practice of developing strategic
alliances, the subject of an interesting piece by freelancer
Peter Fretty this month on page 27.

Strategic alliances, Fretty notes, leverage the skills and assets of two companies so
they can achieve more than they ever could have separately. As I read the piece, I could
not help but think of an analogy that could be useful for companies considering such
an alliance: marriage.

For example, Fretty quotes business coach Ann Ranson: “The goal of entering an
alliance should be to find sustainable congruencies capable of yielding long-term mutual
benefits.” Excellent advice for those considering matrimony, no?

Another business-alliance veteran, Frogbox founder Doug Burgoyne, comments,
“Trust is instrumental in making it through the tough times and establishing a genuine
relationship.” Indeed.

Or how about this piece of advice from Concrete Wave founder Michael Brooke:
“Festering problems or concerns will destroy an alliance quickly.” Ain’t that the truth?

Burgoyne also points out that if an alliance is “too lopsided your way” it just won’t
work out in the long run.

I hope that in the future you’ll try this technique of thinking personal when
reading our business articles and vice versa. It could double your enjoyment of
The Costco Connection. C